Coronavirus - 22nd April

Summary for Wednesday, 22nd April

Hello and welcome back to our rolling coverage of the coronavirus outbreak. We're writing to you from Asia this morning and will be joined by our colleagues from London later on in the day. Here's a quick look at what's happened overnight:

• Missouri has become the first US state to sue the Chinese government over its handling of the outbreak, saying the Chinese response led to economic losses in the state
  
• The US will stop issuing green cards for 60 days, with President Donald Trump saying this would protect American jobs during the outbreak
  
• The WHO has dismissed theories that the virus was manipulated or produced in a Chinese laboratory, saying "all available evidence" suggested it had an "animal origin"
  
• The world is at risk of a widespread famine of "biblical proportions" because of the virus outbreak, the UN has warned. It says the number suffering from hunger could go from 135 million to more than 250 million.
  
• A staggering 177,200 people worldwide have now died from the coronavirus, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally. There are over 2.5 million cases worldwide
  

Missouri sues China over virus pandemic

The US state of Missouri is suing the Chinese government and the ruling Communist Party over what it calls deliberate deception leading to the global Covid-19 pandemic.
"The Chinese government lied to the world about the danger and contagious nature of Covid-19, silenced whistleblowers and did little to stop the spread of the disease," Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt said. "They must be held accountable for their actions."
The lawsuit seeks damages for the loss of life, human suffering, and economic turmoil that has occurred in the state.
China strongly denies mishandling the crisis.
While Missouri officials called the lawsuit "historic", observers say it will face significant legal and procedural obstacles as US law gives foreign governments immunity from such actions.

Should China be worried about the Missouri lawsuit?

The civil lawsuit brought by Missouri against China comes at a time when there is increased finger-pointing by the US at Beijing over the pandemic.
President Donald Trump had initially praised China for how it handled the virus, but after coming under pressure over the outbreak in the US, he raised the spectre that China might be responsible.
With US elections later this year, observers suggest the Missouri lawsuit - along with other suits brought by US companies - might serve a political end for Trump's Republican Party.
"We are seeing a lot of people on the political right focus on the China issue to cover up for the US government's own errors," Tom Ginsburg, a professor of international law at the University of Chicago told Reuters.
China itself will have little to fear from such lawsuits. Foreign governments are protected from being sued in US courts and if the US did want to bring claims against China, it would have to do so on an international platform where Beijing would have the right to respond.

UN warns of famines of ‘biblical proportions’

The world is at risk of widespread famines "of biblical proportions" over the virus, the UN World Food Programme (WFP )warns.
A new WFP report estimates the number suffering from hunger could go from 135 million to more than 250 million.
Those most at risk are in 10 countries affected by conflict, economic crisis and climate change: Yemen, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, Venezuela, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Nigeria and Haiti.
Even before the pandemic hit, parts of East Africa and South Asia were already facing severe food shortages.
Click here to read our full story on the famine warning

Sydney's Bondi Beach to reopen

People can return to Bondi Beach for exercise from next Tuesday


Good morning from Sydney, where more restrictions are being loosened as new cases slow to a trickle.

• The famous Bondi Beach will be reopened to swimmers and surfers next week after a month-long closure. It follows the reopening of a few neighbouring beaches on Monday
  
• Two people have died overnight bringing Australia’s death toll to 74. Rates continue to dwindle with the biggest state, New South Wales, reporting its lowest number yet – just five cases – while Queensland recorded zero new infections for a second day
  
• Canberra is defending its decision to let Virgin Australia crash into voluntary administration- saying interested investors wouldn’t come forward had the government stepped in
  
• And our longest-running soap opera Neighbours will resume filming next week. Producers say they’ll use a bit of “camera trickery” to mask the fact actors are projecting their lines over a 1.5m distance.
  

Just some detail on Bondi Beach reopening next week – this is the busiest, most-popular beach in Sydney and the source of a virus cluster.
It was shut down weeks ago after people kept flocking to the ocean, ignoring the newly-announced distancing rules. It then also emerged that the area was a virus hotspot with infections among backpackers and locals.
However, society has become much more used to the restrictions since then and after neighbouring beaches Coogee and Clovelly reopened this week, local council voted last night to bring down the barriers.
It’s a controversial decision as Bondi remains the most heavily infected area in the state, and there's evidence people are still breaking the rules.
But from Tuesday, people will only be given access for exercise and will have to follow a path straight to the water. The beach will also only be open on weekdays.

What's happening in Asia?

As much of Asia begins waking up, we take a look at what's happening across the region:

• China has seen a slight rise in the number of imported cases. It recorded 30 new cases on Tuesday, 23 of which were imported and seven of which were local cases in the border city of Heilongjiang. China had on Monday seen only 4 imported cases
  
• Japan’s Nagasaki prefecture says there are 33 cases of coronavirus infection on an Italian cruise ship that was docked for repair in the city, reported Reuters. Local media outlets say the Costa Atlantica is carrying 623 crew and no passengers
  
• Thailand has approved a second automatic visa extension for foreigners, in an effort to prevent long queues at immigration centres
  
• Around 500 people at the Presidential House in the Indian capital of New Delhi went into self-isolation after a worker's relative tested positive for the virus
  

US top health expert warns of second wave

A senior US disease expert has warned that a second wave of coronavirus cases could be worse than the current one, as it would probably coincide with the start of the flu season.
“There’s a possibility that the assault of the virus on our nation next winter will actually be even more difficult than the one we just went through,” Robert Redfield, head of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told the Washington Post.
He said that having two simultaneous respiratory outbreaks would put unimaginable strain on the health-care system.
His warning comes as several US states prepared to reopen their economies and he urged the coming months to be used to prepare for what lies ahead and that social distancing must continue.

China official calls Australian minister a 'US puppet'

Australian minister Peter Dutton has called for an investigation into China

In another war of words between China and the West, Beijing’s embassy in Australia has accused a senior government minister of being a lackey in the “propaganda war against China” by the US.
Washington has led calls in recent weeks for an investigation into the virus’ emergence and spread in China.
Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton echoed such calls for Beijing to show transparency. He fell sick with the virus in March, and last week emerged to say Beijing owed answers to the families of the dead.
“It would certainly be demanded of us, if Australia was at the epicentre of this virus making its way into society,” he told the Nine Network.
In response, a Chinese embassy official told a state newspaper that "obviously he [Dutton] must have also received some instructions from Washington”.
Beijing has also criticised foreign minister, Marise Payne, who has also called for an investigation. Canberra has stood by the calls, saying they're in Australia's national interest.

Singapore rushes to get bubble tea and haircuts

Bubble tea shops have become the latest casualty of the coronavirus outbreak in Singapore.
Long snaking queues were seen in front of popular bubble tea chains last night after the government announced that stores selling the sugary drink were among the shops that would have to close for at least two weeks starting today.
The new restrictions apply to F&B outlets that sell only beverages, packaged snacks or desserts. Restaurants and other food places will still be allowed to open for takeaway or delivery.
There were also similarly long queues seen at hairdresser shops and pet shops last night - who have also been deemed non-essential under the new rules.
It comes as Singapore extended its partial state of lockdown, which it refers to as a "circuit breaker", until 1 June, as the number of cases in the migrant worker community remain high.
  For any of you plebs out there who (like me) had to look up what is 'bubble tea'  ...

Bubble tea is a Taiwanese tea-based drink invented in Tainan and Taichung in the 1980s. Recipes contain tea of some kind, flavors of milk, and sugar. Toppings, known as "pearls", such as chewy tapioca balls, popping boba, fruit jelly, grass jelly, agar jelly, alovera jelly, sago and puddings are often added. Wikipedia

Calls for India's largest produce market to shut after trader dies

It is India's largest wholesale fruits and vegetable market

Sellers are demanding for Azadpur Mandi, one of Asia's largest wholesale fruit and vegetable markets, to be closed after a trader died of Covid-19 on Tuesday.
The 57-year-old man, who sold jackfruits and peas, tested positive on Monday, officials told the Hindustan Times newspaper.
They added that a team was looking at all the people the trader was in contact with.
Meanwhile, some traders want a complete lockdown of the market. “The authorities are being very negligent about Covid-19 spread in the market. We urge the government to shut the market for the time being," one of them said.
The market is spread across 78 acres in capital Delhi and would often attract more than 200,000 people on any given day.
It has remained open during India's lockdown and has been operating with social distancing measures in place, authorities say.

Tokyo theatre streams Kabuki plays

If you're bored at home with nothing to watch - here's some good news for you - the Phantom of the Opera's not the only theatre performance that's being streamed live on YouTube.
The Kabukiza theater in Tokyo is now streaming traditional Kabuki plays on Youtube - free for all to watch.
Kabuki is a form of Japanese musical drama, which has been characterised by its elaborate costumes and sets. In it, both male and female acting roles are played by men.
Catch this traditional art form here

Trump and Harvard quarrel over relief money

US President Donald Trump has demanded Harvard University pay back nearly $9m (£7.3m) in coronavirus relief aid.
He said it was wrong that an institution with a $40bn endowment should receive stimulus funds.
Harvard rejected Trump's demand, saying it planned "to direct 100% of the funds to financial assistance to students, and will not be using any of the funds to cover institutional costs".
The university said it received the grant through the educational relief program that was part of the $2.3tn stimulus passed at the end of March, which also included a larger fund for helping small businesses.

Netflix and (lockdown) chill

If you're a new subscriber to Netflix, or find yourself watching a lot more of its shows because of a lockdown where you live, you're not alone.
The company says almost 16 million people created accounts in the first three months of this year, almost double the rate of new sign-ups in the final months of 2019.
And it'll come as no surprise to anyone who's been near social media in recent weeks that the Netflix documentary series Tiger King has been a huge hit, reaching 64 million households.


But you might have noticed that the picture is not as clear as you might expect. That's because demand for streaming has been so high that Netflix last month said it would reduce the quality of its videos in Europe to ease strain on internet service providers.
All of that means, that while many companies have seen their share price slump as they're hit by the gloomy economic outlook, the home-entertainment giant's stock market value has jumped by around a third this year.
Read more here.

Indian migrants: When can I go home?

Geeta Pandey - BBC News, Delhi
Last week, when the lockdown in India was extended, thousands of migrant workers in Mumbai city thronged a railway station amid rumours of services restarting.
Outrage ensued in the capital, Delhi, when photos of several hundred migrants living under a bridge along the Yamuna river emerged.
These incidents, among many others, of stranded migrants have shone a spotlight on the plight of millions of poor Indians who've left villages to find jobs in cities.
Whether living in shelters, sleeping on footpaths or under flyovers, the migrants are restless and are waiting for restrictions to be eased so they can go home.
A few days back, I visited one shelter in east Delhi, located in a school building, run by the city government.
It's home to 380 migrants and I spoke to dozens of men and women there and the one question they all want answered is: "When can I go home?"
Read the full story here.

South Africa unveils $26bn Covid-19 relief package

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced an economic relief package worth $26bn (£21bn) intended to protect companies and three million workers during the coronavirus pandemic.
In a televised address, he said the assistance amounted to 10% of South Africa’s entire GDP.
Mr Ramaphosa said economic relief measures include tax relief, wage support through the unemployment insurance fund and funding to small businesses.
Mr Ramaphosa acknowledged that during just four weeks of lockdown, the number of people plunged into poverty and suffering food insecurity had risen dramatically.
He said the lockdown had allowed the government space to save tens of thousands of lives. But he said that after 3,400 confirmed infections and 58 deaths, the country was still in the early stages of the pandemic.

PPE equipment arrives in UK

A British RAF plane believed to be carrying a delayed consignment of personal protective equipment for UK medical workers has landed in the UK.
Flight tracker RadarBox showed the Airbus A400-M depart Istanbul and land just after 03:30GMT at the RAF Brize Norton, reports PA.
The consignment was originally due to arrive on Sunday but was hit by "unexpected delays".
It is a small part of a gigantic procurement of PPE for the NHS.
For more details, read our economics editor, Faisal Islam.

How has India been doing?

If you're tuning in from India this morning, you may be wondering just how things are holding up.
The lockdown was extended last week to 3 May - but it's still unclear exactly how effective it has been since experts don't know if cases in India have peaked yet.
But the time it takes for cases to double is growing - there are nearly 20,000 infections, and it took eight days to get there from 10,000. India has confirmed 640 deaths, according to data from the health ministry.
Some Indian states have also had to pause antibody testing after faulty testing kits from China displayed incorrect results. The antibody tests can help signal whether people may have built immunity to the virus.
Meanwhile, 69% of all positive cases in the country so far were asymptomatic, India's apex medical council said on Tuesday.
This ratio has raised questions over the future of India's testing strategy and whether the current one - focused mostly on those showing symptoms - needs an overhaul.

'He thinks everybody is panicking unnecessarily'

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro has come under criticism for his response to coronavirus, most recently for attending an anti-lockdown rally where he was seen repeatedly coughing.
The BBC's South America correspondent Katy Watson looks at how Bolsonaro has responded to the virus.
Watch video here

UK morning headlines

• The UK government is facing fresh questions over the time it took to join an EU scheme to source medical equipment
  
• Health Secretary Matt Hancock says the UK government is "throwing everything" at developing a coronavirus vaccine, with human trials set to begin on Thursday
  
• An RAF plane carrying protective equipment has arrived in the UK after days of delays
  
• Deaths in England and Wales have nearly doubled above what would be expected, hitting a 20-year high, but experts believe the coronavirus peak may be over
  

Germany sees second day of slight rise in cases

Germany has seen 2,237 new positive tests over the past day, official numbers on Wednesday showed.
The official overall number is now 145,694, although around two-thirds of those have already recovered.
The daily increase marks a second consecutive day of new infections slightly rising.
Earlier this week, the country eased some of its lockdown measures, allowing smaller shops to reopen and some school classes to resume.
The reported death toll rose by 281 to 4,879.

Don't forget 'deeper emergency' says UN

We may be in the midst of a pandemic, but the UN doesn't want us to forget the "deeper environmental emergency" facing the planet.
That's the view of the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, in remarks released to celebrate Earth Day.
The toll taken by the virus is "immediate and dreadful," Mr Guterres said, adding that it's also been a wake-up call "to do things right for the future".
Coronavirus is the biggest challenged the world has faced since World War Two, Mr Guterres reiterated, but also pointed out that biodiversity is in "steep decline" with climate disruption approaching "a point of no return".
You can read more about his comments here.

London Tube operator could run out of money by May

Transport for London (TfL) will run out of money by the end of the month unless the government steps in, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has said.
TfL runs the UK capital's public transport systems, including the London Underground, but services have seen a dramatic drop in passengers because of coronavirus .
Khan said TfL is in discussions with the government about a grant but said it would not be able to pay staff and may have to cut services if that was not possible.
Khan told BBC London TfL is currently using cash reserves to keep running.

What explains South East Asia's low numbers?

Jonathan Head - BBC South East Asia Correspondent
The first case of Covid-19 outside China was announced in Thailand on 13 January. The prediction was that this region, with huge numbers of Chinese visitors, would be among the worst affected. But that has not happened.
Vietnam is the standout success with only 268 cases and no deaths. The communist party leadership recognised the threat very early, declaring in late January the need to fight the virus like a war, and deploying propaganda reminiscent of the conflict with the US to get the public on board. Vietnam was also ruthless in quarantining entire districts where the virus was detected. It has limited healthcare resources and lacks the testing capacity of advanced economies like South Korea. Vietnam’s achievement is likely down to containing Covid-19 early, and using an intrusive state apparatus effectively.
Thailand’s Covid-19 numbers are also strikingly low, fewer than 3,000, with just 49 deaths. Thailand too is unable to test widely. Only 140,000 have been conducted since January. Health officials say mass testing would be too expensive. But Thailand also got its population on board very early with measures like facemasks. It has been able to isolate and trace contacts for identified cases, and has a network of one million health volunteers across the country.
Infections - and deaths - are rising quickly in Indonesia, where measures have been minimal. In Myanmar, which has a testing capacity of just 300 a day, there are fears the official Covid-19 number is far too low.
But none of these countries has levels anywhere near those in Europe and the US. Health experts aren’t sure why. Weather may play a part, as may social behaviour. It is probably too soon to know whether South East Asia will escape the terrible scenes witnessed at hospitals in Italy and New York.

What's happening in sport

• Tottenham footballers Serge Aurier and Moussa Sissoko have apologised for training together despite the coronavirus restrictions. Aurier posted a video of the pair on social media - the third time Spurs staff have been caught doing something similar
  
• Dutch football authorities have said they intend to call off their league season after the government extended a ban on major events (Ajax and AZ Alkmaar are joint top)
  
• Most major European leagues, including the English Premier League, are hoping to complete their seasons later in the summer
  
• European football governing body Uefa is set to announce the 2021 Women's European Championship will be held in July 2022 after the men's tournament, and the Tokyo Olympics, were postponed to 2021
  

The 2021 Women's European Championships is due to be held in England

Dozens of Kenyans escape from quarantine

International arrivals were quarantined for 14 days and some received an extension for non-compliance

Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta has said dozens of people who were filmed escaping from mandatory quarantine in the capital, Nairobi, will be arrested.
The president spoke on Wednesday morning, just hours after the video was shared online. It showed some people jumping over a perimeter wall at one of the quarantine centres.
President Kenyatta said the government knew the identities of all those who escaped and would take them back to the quarantine centre.
Kenya's Citizen TV channel said the escape took place when it started raining and guards took cover.

UK teacher dies of Covid-19

An English teacher working at Kingsford Community school in Newham in east London has died of coronavirus.
On the school's website, headteacher Joan Deslandes wrote: "It is with a heavy heart and deep sorrow that I must share the tragic news that Doctor Louisa Rajakumari, a much-loved and gifted Kingsford teacher, sadly died this morning after contracting the coronavirus."

Iceland announces new aid package

Officials in Iceland have announced a new package to support businesses and groups suffering in the pandemic.
Unemployed people and low-income families will get extra help and smaller businesses will get loans to support them in a package reportedly worth $420m.
"Today's announcement reflects our priorities to protect jobs, embrace our people and look to the future," Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said.
The northern European country has been praised for its virus testing, and has recorded 1,778 virus cases and 10 deaths so far.

Commonwealth summit postponed

Maggie Mutesi - BBC Africa Money Daily, Nairobi


Rwanda, which was to host the meeting, has extended its lockdown until early May

This year’s Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), scheduled to be held in Rwanda, has been postponed due to the pandemic.
More than 10,000 delegates - including the UK Prime Minister and Prince of Wales - were expected to attend the 26th summit in the capital Kigali in two months' time.
A new date has not been announced.
It was going to be the first summit held in a country with no colonial links to the UK. Rwanda, which was formerly a Belgian colony, joined the Commonwealth in 2009.

Tottenham footballers apologise for breaking restrictions

Tottenham footballers Serge Aurier and Moussa Sissoko have apologised after posting a picture of themselves training together, despite coronavirus restrictions.
Aurier posted a video on social media - since deleted - of him wearing a mask while running next to Sissoko.
UK government guidelines say you can only exercise on your own or with people you live with.
The pair said they will make a donation to the NHS as part of their apology.

The NHS staff living away from home

For some medical workers in the UK, making the choice to go to work each day also means the acceptance that they won't be able to go back to their homes at night.
Some live with their older, more vulnerable parents, or children or partners with high-risk conditions - so they have to isolate themselves to eliminate any possibility of spreading the virus.
"As a mother you miss hugging your kids, and my son has been through a lot in the last year. I don't see this as a negative, but it's something I need to do to protect my son," said nurse Shani Stocker.
"Yes this is difficult but I'm willing to do it, to help get people better."
Read more about their experience here.

Quarantined in an Indonesian 'haunted house'

Some rural areas in Indonesia are struggling to get people to comply with quarantine and self-isolation orders, but one community has come up with an innovative idea.
In the Sragen district of central Java, anyone who refuses an order to isolate themselves for 14 days can be tossed into a "haunted house" jail. Village heads have been told to repurpose abandoned houses feared to be haunted and use them as quarantine facilities. Belief in the supernatural and ghosts is common in Indonesia.
The village of Sepat has put up three offenders in one such house. Its chief Mulyono, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told the AFP news agency: "Some locals including my own relatives, who tried to live here but only lasted for a month, they said they were disturbed by things, like giant dark shadows."
Meanwhile one of the residents, Heri Susanto, said he hadn't encountered any ghosts - yet. "But whatever happens, happens. I know this is for everyone's safety. Lesson learned," he said.
More pictures of the "haunted house" below:

Stephen Hawking ventilator donated to NHS

Stephen Hawking's ventilator has been donated to the Royal Papworth Hospital in the English city of Cambridge in the hope that it will "help in the fight against Covid-19", says a Press Association report.
The physicist, who suffered from motor neurone disease, died in 2018.
"After [he] passed away, we returned all the medical equipment he used that belonged to the NHS but there were some items which he bought for himself," his daughter Lucy Hawking told the PA.
"We are now passing them to the NHS in the hope they will help."
The UK is understood to currently have about 10,000 ventilators.The Health Secretary Matt Hancock had earlier estimated that the country needs 18,000.
Read more about why ventilators are so important here.

Central London deserted

With people staying home, many of London's landmarks are deserted.
These photos were captured by BBC London online journalist Rebecca Cafe yesterday afternoon.

An almost-empty Regent Street




The National Gallery




Newspapers remain untaken, as there are fewer commuters near Oxford Street Tube station

Spain PM aims to ease lockdown in May

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez says his government plans to start winding down the country's lockdown measures in the second half of May, reports Reuters.
These restrictions will be eased slowly and gradually to ensure safety, he said at a parliamentary session. Mr Sanchez is also expected to extend Spain's state of emergency until 9 May.
Spain first enforced its lockdown on 14 March. It has the second highest number of virus cases in the world at 204,178, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally.

Japan discovers cluster in foster home

There's been a virus cluster in a Japanese care home for infants, with eight children testing positive. They had been tested after one staff member was confirmed positive.
None of the children were showing major symptoms but they have been taken to hospital, a spokeswoman at Saiseikai Central Hospital, which runs the institution, said.
Japan has more than 11,500 confirmed infections and nearly 300 deaths have been linked to the virus.

Stray email meant UK did not join EU scheme - care minister

Care minister Helen Whately says it is "very frustrating" that "an email went astray" meaning the UK did not participate in an EU scheme to source medical equipment.
On Tuesday, a senior civil servant retracted claims the UK had taken a "political decision" not to join the scheme.
Whately told BBC Radio 4's Today programme it was a "communication error".
The MP also said it is "really troubling" not as many people in the UK are being tested for coronavirus as could be.
She said the UK has the capacity to carry out 40,000 tests per day but on Tuesday only 18,000 were tested.
Whately said the government will try to improve the access to tests by increasing mobile testing units and sending out home testing kits to NHS and care workers.

Latest from Europe

Spain loosens restrictions on children after an outcry and Romania raises millions of euros in lockdown fines. Here’s the latest from Europe:

• Children are currently not allowed outside for any reason in Spain. On Tuesday the government initially said young children would be allowed out, but only to run errands with their parents. After a huge backlash they loosened the rules further – from Sunday children up to the age of 14 will be allowed out for a walk, accompanied by an adult
  
• In one month, Romania has raised €78 million (£69m) after handing out about 200,000 fines to people who flouted national virus restrictions. It’s roughly the equivalent of the national corporate tax income for the whole of February
  
• Traffic cameras in Moscow will now check cars for digital travel permits, as the Russian capital tightens its lockdown measures. Anyone with cold-like symptoms will also have to stay home, as will their family members
  
• There has been a fourth consecutive night of unrest in the Paris suburb of Villeneuve-la-Garenne. Social tensions have risen further under strict lockdown rules
  
• And this September’s Berlin Marathon has been called off after Germany extended its ban on large public gatherings until 24 October
  

R. Kelly denied virus jail release

R&B singer R. Kelly, awaiting sex abuse trials in New York and Chicago, has had a second emergency plea for his release denied.
He is currently housed in Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago, where coronavirus has been reported in staff and inmates.
But on Tuesday a US District Judge said he must stay behind bars over fears he could flee bail or intimidate witnesses if released.
Several high-profile US inmates, including disgraced comedian Bill Cosby, have cited coronavirus in appeals for early release in recent weeks.
Donald Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen and rapper Tekashi 69 are among those who have been allowed to finish their sentences at home.

What is the latest from the UK?

Welcome to Wednesday's coverage, if you're just joining us.
In the UK there are still questions surrounding the government's supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) from abroad.
There are also growing concerns that only a fraction of "at risk" children are going to school despite being eligible.
You can read about these stories, and others, in our morning coronavirus update.

'Am I alive or dead?'

It started out with what felt like muscle aches, a cough and then a fever that set in.
It's a set of symptoms that have now become familiar. For Elizabeth, it was the start of many long days and nights that would be spent in hospital.
During her stay, she was in a room with three other people who had all tested positive for the virus. By the end of her stay, two of these people had died.
It was a struggle staying alive even for Elizabeth herself.
"I had told myself: 'No, I've got to carry on, I'm not going yet. I'm 49, I'm not ready to die, not just for me but for my kids and my family and friends.'"
This is Elizabeth's story.

Warning over US 'second wave'

The director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has warned that a second wave of coronavirus could be even more dangerous than the current outbreak.
“There’s a possibility that the assault of the virus on our nation next winter will actually be even more difficult than the one we just went through,” Robert Redfield told the Washington Post newspaper.
“We’re going to have the flu epidemic and the coronavirus epidemic at the same time,” he added.

• Read more about his warning
  

Labour wants more PPE made by British firms

More now on the UK government's attempts to acquire more personal protective equipment (PPE) for health and social care workers.
Labour's shadow health secretary Jon Ashworth has called on the government to "mobilise British firms" to make PPE.
The government remains under pressure for failing to supply enough PPE and a number of British companies have told the BBC their offers to help have been ignored.
Care minister Helen Whately told Radio 4's Today programme the government had responded to 3,000 of 8,000 offers from companies, but was concentrating on those with established supply chains.
Ashworth said the delay in responding to offers was "understandable" but called for more focus to be given to making PPE in the UK, pointing to the delays in equipment arriving from Turkey as an example of issues with sourcing it internationally.
"It may be companies can only make small quantities of it but that doesn't matter," Ashworth told BBC Breakfast.
"We need everybody doing what they can as part of this national effort.
"It is absolutely vital we are supporting small businesses because they are backbone of economy."

What is the EU procurement process and what happened with the UK?

Gavin Lee - BBC Europe reporter
The EU’s Joint Procurement Agreement has four schemes - two for personal protective equipment (PPE), one for ventilators, one for laboratory equipment, mainly testing kits.
The EU Commission has confirmed that the UK is not involved in any of them, and has not officially requested to be involved in any of them, despite being “repeatedly invited” by the EU to do so.
Other non-EU countries have joined up.
The first meeting to establish this joint procurement plan took place at the end of January, two days before the UK left the EU and entered the transition phase.
Several other EU meetings on procurement took place, to which a UK representative was “not always there” according to EU officials.
On the 17 March the procurement procedure was launched, and member states started a public tendering process for suppliers.
The EU Commission says they are now waiting for member states to put in their orders for the PPE and medical equipment they need and first allocations will be in the “coming days and weeks”.
The EU hasn’t put a figure on the total bulk of purchases they’ve made, as “some countries are still finding more suppliers”, but it’s understood to be worth hundreds of millions of euros.
The EU says the UK can be part of a “procurement programme in future”, as there are ongoing discussions about what else might be needed.
The deadline has been missed on the current programme.

Pakistan PM awaits Covid-19 test results

Mr Khan (right) met Mr Edhi last week

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan is awaiting the results of his Covid-19 test after news emerged that he had come in contact with a charity group leader who has tested positive.
Health authorities collected his sample on Tuesday, and results are expected later on Wednesday, local media reported.
The philanthropist met the prime minister last week when he gave him a cheque to support Pakistan's fight against the virus.
Mr Khan has also held various meetings over the last few days, including a Cabinet meet on Tuesday.
Pakistan has confirmed more than 9,000 infections and nearly 200 deaths.
In the UK, Boris Johnson is recovering from coronavirus after testing positive for it last month.
And in Canada, Justin Trudeau had to self-isolate after his wife tested positive in March.

Singapore cases pass 10,000

The number of cases in Singapore has crossed the 10,000 mark, tipped over by 1,016 new cases reported on Wednesday.
Singapore now has the highest number of cases in South East Asia, with a large majority of these cases linked to dormitories that house foreign workers.
Previously lauded as a model for how to get it right, it’s now had to extend and tighten a lockdown, as well as seal off multiple dormitories where these men live - raising questions about why more wasn’t done earlier.The government is carrying out extensive testing and trying to move healthy workers out, but people living in the dorms said they were scared about getting ill, and about what the future holds for them.

UK airlines and travel firms criticised

There has been a wave of complaints from air passengers and holidaymakers who have faced difficulty getting refunds on their cancelled travel plans.
Consumer organisation Which? has accused many of the UK's biggest airlines and travel companies of breaking laws in place to protect customers.
It said the travel industry's own estimates suggested £7bn of travelers' money was affected.
You can read more about the difficulties people are facing and learn about your rights here.

Spain deaths continue to mount

Spain has recorded 435 deaths in the past 24 hours.
This number, a slight increase on yesterday, brings their overall death toll to 21,717.
It comes as the country's parliament debates a request from the prime minister to extend the current state of emergency until 9 May.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez says his government plans to start winding down the country's lockdown measures after this date.
"We will be going back-and-forth depending on how the pandemic evolves," he said.
The country has almost 205,000 confirmed coronavirus cases - the second highest in the world.

Latin America update: Cases grow and tributes paid to 32-year-old doctor in Brazil

• In Brazil, tributes are being paid to 32-year-old doctor Frederic Jota Lima who died on Monday. Mass graves are being excavated for coronavirus victims in Manaus, which has reported 193 deaths and a collapsing health system. The number of infections in the country reached more than 43,000 on Tuesday, but some governors are easing social distancing measures
  

• Mexico reports an 8.3% increase in infections, rising to a total of 9,501 cases. 857 people have now died there. In Mexico City, 20% of public transport stops will close from Thursday, and most private cars will be banned from the roads
  
• Stranded Ecuadoran citizens abroad will be flown home and quarantined for 14 days, the government announces. Officials reported a further 902 deaths likely caused by Covid-19, in addition to the 520 officially confirmed in the country where bodies were seen piling up in the capital Guayaquil. The government hopes to renegotiate its foreign debt and wants to re-open some commercial businesses as the economy continues to be hit hard by quarantine measures
  
• In Peru, the government has helped to transport 4,000 people made unemployed by the pandemic from the capital Lima home to their regions. Officials have warned stranded people not to return to the country’s highlands on foot
  
• And in Colombia, robots are going door-to-door to deliver parcels to quarantined residents of the city of Medellin, where a lockdown will continue until 11 May . The company who deployed the 120 robots say they are some of the first to be used in Latin America
  

Raab faces Starmer at 'virtual' PMQs

Boris Johnson is still recovering from coronavirus so Dominic Raab will deputise for him at Prime Minister's Question's shortly.
The foreign secretary will face new Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, and MPs questions for the first time since the Easter break at about 12:00 BST.
Mr Raab and Sir Keir will be in the House of Commons.
Other MPs are expected to ask their questions via video link, with the number of MPs in the chamber limited to 50 to aid social-distancing.
UK personal protective equipment (PPE) shortages and virus testing are expected to be among the key topics on the agenda

Romania hands out 200,000 fines for lockdown breaches

Romanians earn an average of £500 (€600) a month, so if you get caught breaking the lockdown rules, a fine of up to six times that amount is going to hurt.
Now it's emerged that authorities have issued 200,000 fines in just under a month and picked up some £69m (€78m) in the process.
The mayor of Bucharest's most densely populated area was himself fined for cycling in a public park. Robert Negoita said he'd been taught a lesson. Read the story here.
People in Romania are allowed out only for work and essential shopping during the daytime

Healthcare workers to receive cash bonus in the Netherlands

Anna Holligan - BBC News Hague correspondent
Healthcare workers in the Netherlands are to receive a cash bonus to recognise their efforts in fighting Covid-19, Dutch finance minister Wopke Hoekstra revealed on Tuesday.
While it’s nice to see people recognising the efforts of doctors and nurses fighting to save lives, Wopke Hoekstra said the universal gratitude must be expressed in a more tangible way, not just in the form of applause - a reference to the current trend in countries like the Netherlands and the UK for people to go outside to clap in a public display of appreciation for staff involved in battling the pandemic.
The idea of showing support with a financial reward was first discussed in the Dutch parliament a month ago. Politicians are now working out how much it will be and when the bonus be paid to those on the front line.

Thousands of cancer cases going undetected, UK charity warns

Thousands of cancer patients are not getting life-saving treatment because of the coronavirus crisis, Cancer Research UK has warned.
The charity says its "very concerned" that 200,000 people a week are no longer being screened for bowel, breast and cervical cancer across the UK.
It said screening services have been formally paused in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and are "de facto" paused in England as no appointments are being made at screening hubs.
Its research also found the number of urgent referrals by GPs has dropped by 75% due to concerns around the risk of Covid-19 at surgeries and hospitals.
More than 2,200 new cancer cases could be going undetected each week, dramatically impacting patients' chances of survival, the charity said.
Its chief clinician Professor Charles Swanton told the BBC that ministers need to urgently deliver on their promise to create "Covid-free" hubs in private hospitals, which he said could be helped by the "routine screening of all staff".

Reality Check: How many people in the US get green cards?

Reality Check
President Trump says he’s stopping applications by foreigners for permanent residence in the US for 60 days because of the impact of the coronavirus. “It would be wrong and unjust for Americans laid off by the virus to be replaced with new immigrant labour flown in from abroad,” he said.
So what do the figures show about who’s coming to the US to live and work? US government data (up to 2018) shows that in nearly every year over the previous decade, more than a million people were given permanent residence (the so-called green card.)
But there are bigger numbers of foreigners given temporary admission each year for employment. In 2018, there were nearly four million workers and their families allowed in to the US on these temporary visas, with more than one million of these coming from Canada. There were also significant numbers from Mexico and India. However, President Trump’s latest move to curb immigration does not cover these. He apparently decided not to include them after a backlash from some business leaders, who feared it would impact farm workers and hi-tech employees.
It’s also unclear how much difference the move will make since many visa services had already been suspended because of the virus outbreak. And it’s worth putting the immigration numbers in the wider context of US unemployment figures – by mid-April, there had been more than 20 million jobless claims over the previous month.

India passes tough new law to curb attacks on doctors

The Indian government has passed a law by which those who are found guilty of attacking doctors or health workers can be sentenced to up to seven years in jail.
Doctors, nurses and community health workers from across the country have reported being attacked - some of the assaults happened in neighbourhoods while health workers were in the process of contact-tracing suspected positive patients, and others occurred in hospitals.
In some cases doctors have also been chased away by their neighbours who feared contracting the virus from them.
The new law was introduced in an ordinance on Wednesday. It's now part of The Epidemic Diseases Act, a 123-year-old colonial-era law, and also carries a hefty fine that could run up to $6,500 (£5,200).
"We have zero tolerance and will not allow this," Prakash Javadekar, a central minister told local media.
India has so far recorded 15,474 active cases and 640 deaths.

Headlines from around the world

If you're just joining us, here are some more developments around the world:

• According to tracking by Johns Hopkins University, there are now more than 2.5 million confirmed cases of coronavirus around the world and more than 177,000 people are known to have died
  
• Clinical trials of possible vaccinations are set to get under way in Germany and the UK
  
• About nine million children will be sent home from Koranic schools across Nigeria because of the outbreak
  
• Police in Morocco have arrested more than 3,000 people in 24 hours for violating coronavirus measures, local media report
  

• Authorities in the town of Buñol, in Spain's Valencia province, have postponed a festival where thousands gather to throw tomatoes at each other, for the first time since 1957
  

How coronavirus is affecting sport - latest updates

Premier League side Crystal Palace have cancelled a summer trip to take part in the Queensland Champions Cup in Australia - a competition they had been hoping to play in as preparation for the 2020-21 football season.
World number one golfer Rory McIlroy has said he would rather the Ryder Cup was postponed until 2021 than be held this year without fans. The event - played between Europe and the United States every two years - is scheduled to take place at Whistling Straits, Wisconsin from 22-27 September.
The Professional Darts Corporation has cancelled its May and June events, including the World Cup of Darts, which was meant to be held in Hamburg, Germany from 18-21 June, although it may be rescheduled for later in the year.
In horse racing, this year’s Galway Festival in the Republic of Ireland will be staged behind closed doors, if it goes ahead as planned in July.

Little Mix and Westlife cancel summer tours

Little Mix and Westlife have both announced the cancellations of their summer tours because of the coronavirus.
Girl band Little Mix were due to begin a month-long tour of UK stadiums on 26 June.
They said they had made the decision "following the latest government advice" and added that the health and safety of fans and crew was their "number one priority".
The recently reformed Irish boyband Westlife were also due to tour in June and July.
“Those who have been on the Westlife journey with us know how important performing is to us, but also know that safety must come first and foremost in delivering a successful tour,” a statement said.
Westlife said their show at London’s Wembley Stadium in August may still go ahead.

Students 'should be able to retake the year'

Katherine Sellgren - BBC News education reporter
UK students should be given the option to retake or be reimbursed for this academic year, the National Union of Students (NUS) says.
The NUS is also calling for a student hardship fund to help those who are struggling.
The union says a survey of nearly 10,000 student union members shows 81% are worried about their future job prospects and 95% are concerned about the impact of Covid-19 on the economy.
The government says it understands this is a difficult time for students.

Third of Scotland's Covid-19 deaths in care homes

About one in three of every coronavirus-linked deaths in Scotland so far have happened in care homes, new figures show.
The latest data released weekly by the National Records of Scotland
show Covid-19 had been mentioned on the death certificates of 1,616 people by 19 April.
Of these deaths, 537 were in care homes, while more than half (910) occurred in hospitals.
The numbers differ from those released daily by the Scottish government, which do not include deaths outside of hospitals.
Equivalent figures were released for England and Wales by the Office for National Statistics on Tuesday.
Read more about the latest Scottish figures here

'Large scale' contact tracing in UK via app, says minister

A planned app will mean the UK government can conduct "large scale" contact tracing, once cases have fallen further, the health secretary has said.
The UK has already confirmed plans to launch the app. It will warn users if they have recently been near someone suspected to have coronavirus.
Matt Hancock told MPs the "NHS app" will be optimised if more people sign up to it when it goes live.
Mr Hancock also told people with non-coronavirus symptoms who need medical advice that they must still contact their GP. "The NHS is there for you," he added.
It comes after reports that people have been avoiding seeking medical treatment due to the risk of being infected with Covid-19

Chinese city near Russian border imposes lockdown

Kerry Allen - BBC Monitoring, Chinese Media Analyst
A Chinese city near the Russian border has now “imposed a lockdown on all residential communities and villages”, according to the national Global Times newspaper.
The city of Harbin, which has a population of 10 million people, is implementing strict measures today, similar to those imposed on the central city of Wuhan during the early stages of the Covid-19 outbreak in January.
Media are widely reporting that Harbin’s government has prohibited non-locals, and any vehicles without local licence plates, from entering the city.
Communities and villages have also been instructed to guard compounds, and to ensure that anybody entering or leaving can prove that they are healthy.
Residents must not go out without a mask, and they are now being told they must comply with temperature checks.
Global Times says that residents are encouraged to report any known returnees who fail to comply with these procedures.
It says they should be electronically monitored.
There are currently 52 confirmed cases in Harbin.
Yesterday, state media reported that 4,106 people had recently been screened for the virus, after two clusters of Covid-19 infections were discovered at hospitals there.
These have been traced back to a Chinese student who returned from New York in mid-March.

China labels Missouri lawsuit 'absurd'

China has responded to a new lawsuit filed against it by the US state of Missouri.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt unveiled the lawsuit on Tuesday, accusing the Chinese government of lying to the world about coronavirus. He said they "did little to stop the spread of the disease" and "must be held accountable for their actions".
A spokesman for China's foreign ministry denounced the move on Wednesday, saying the "frivolous lawsuit has no factual or legal basis".
"Really absurd. Based on the principle of sovereign equality, US courts have NO jurisdiction over the Chinese government," he said.

• Read more: Missouri sues Chinese government over virus handling
  

Some English football leagues end season

Football clubs in the National League - the fifth tier of English football - and the National League North and the National League South - the sixth tier - have voted to end the 2019-20 season at its current point.
The league said there was a "clear majority of clubs in favour", although it is unclear what will happen regarding teams being promoted and relegated.
The Premier League - English football's top level - and the EFL - consisting of the Championship, League One and League Two - are all trying to complete their current seasons fully.
Premier League leaders Liverpool are 25 points clear at the top of the table and need to win two of their final nine matches to become English champions for the first time since 1990.

Footballers compete in e-tournament to raise money for NHS

Football may have been suspended in the UK but players are still competing against each other while at home.
A number of top players, plus musicians Tom Grennan and Josh Franceschi, are competing in the ePremier League Invitational - a tournament played on video game Fifa 20.
The tournament is being streamed on the BBC Sport website and the prize fund is being donated to the #PlayersTogether initiative, which was created by Premier League players to raise funds for the NHS.
Earlier on Wednesday, Manchester City and England forward Raheem Sterling beat Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha 5-4.

What is the WHO's position on masks?

There's been a lot of debate on whether healthy people should be wearing masks at the moment, and many places around the world have now either made it compulsory or issued advisories. Germany, for instance, has become the latest country to urge people to wear masks in public. But what is the official advice from the World Health Organization? After a recent meeting to discuss the issue, it still maintains that medical masks should be reserved only for healthcare workers and not for the general public.
In the UK, hospital bosses have warned that supplies of face masks for the NHS could be put at risk if the government started advising the public to wear them.

UK death toll rises

A further 759 people have died with coronavirus across UK hospitals after testing positive for coronavirus as of 17:00 BST on Tuesday, government figures show.
It takes the total number to 18,100.
These figures do not include deaths in the community, in places such as care homes.
In England, daily figures show a further 665 people who tested positive for Covid-19 have died in hospitals. The NHS England update takes the total to 16,272.
In Scotland, latest figures released earlier showed the daily death toll increased by 77, taking the total number of hospital deaths to 1,062.
In Wales, another 15 hospital deaths have been reported, taking the total number to 624.
Wednesday's update has not yet been released for Northern Ireland.
To find out more on deaths in the community, tap here for England and Wales and here for Scotland.

German vaccine set for human testing

A possible vaccine for Covid-19, developed by German firm BioNTech and US drug giant Pfizer, has been given the green light for human testing.
The trial will begin with 200 healthy people, aged between 18 and 55, being given the vaccine.
"This is a good sign that the development of a vaccine in Germany is so progressed that we can start with the first studies," the country's health minister, Jens Spahn, said Wednesday. "At the same time the advice remains important that it will take months. This is an injection in the body. Safety first is the guideline for such a vaccine."
Only a handful of vaccine candidates have been approved for clinical testing on humans globally, and experts caution that it will take at least a year for a viable vaccine to be developed.
Scientists at the UK's Oxford University are starting human trials of a possible vaccine this week. Other clinical trials are taking place in the US and China.

• Read more: When will we have a vaccine?
  

If you're just joining us...

Good morning to our readers in the US and Canada, and a particularly warm welcome if you're joining us in lockdown.
Here are some of the headlines in North America to get you up to speed:

• The head of the CDC has warned that the US could experience a second wave of the virus that's even worse than the first, which would put "unimaginable strain" on the country's healthcare system
  
• The US state of Missouri is suing China over its handling of the coronavirus outbreak, arguing that it's led to severe economic losses. China's foreign ministry denounced the move, saying the "frivolous lawsuit has no factual or legal basis"
  
• US President Donald Trump justified halting immigration by saying he wanted to put Americans "first in line for jobs" when the country reopened (Critics say he is trying to distract attention away from his response to the virus.)
  
• Canada's chief public health officer said the country was still a "way off" from recovering from the virus, but praised Canadians' "sacrifices and every day inconveniences" that have "prevented an explosive outbreak" like those seen in other countries
  
• As of this morning, 45,075 people have died of the virus in the US and there have been 825,306 confirmed cases. In Canada, 1,915 people have died and there have been 39,405 confirmed cases, according to the tally kept by Johns Hopkins University
  

Doctors raise concern over UK's coronavirus advice

Dozens of doctors have raised questions about how long the UK advises those with Covid-19 symptoms to self-isolate.
Government guidance
says people should stay at home and avoid contact with others for seven days if they develop symptoms.
That's a much shorter timeframe than that suggested by the World Health Organization.
A group of 25 doctors have written to the Health Secretary Matt Hancock about their concerns.
Read more here.

British army general to join UK briefing

Today’s UK government press conference will take place in about an hour’s time from Downing Street.
Fresh from standing in for PM Boris Johnson in the House of Commons, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will be leading the briefing.
Today, he’ll be joined by the UK government’s chief medical adviser Prof Chris Whitty, also a familiar face at these events.
But for the first time, we'll also be hearing from Chief of Defence Staff General Sir Nick Carter, the UK’s most senior military officer.

First US death came weeks earlier than thought

A post-mortem in California has revealed the first US death related to the coronavirus came weeks earlier than previously thought.
A death in Seattle, Washington state, on 26 February was originally believed to be the first in the country.
But two people who died on 6 and 17 February in Santa Clara Country, California, have now been shown to have had Covid-19.
At the time, national criteria restricted testing only to people with a known travel history and who were showing specific symptoms.
The county coroner's statement said "we anticipate additional deaths from Covid-19 will be identified" as investigations continue.
Read the full story here.

Second home fears rise in Wales

Felicity Evans - BBC Wales political editor
A group of senior doctors from across Wales has written an open letter to Wales' first minister and health minister calling on them to make second home use unlawful during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Tourism and holiday home use facilitate non-essential movement into rural areas, increasing the population and thus placing additional pressures on local health and emergency services," the letter said.
First Minister Mark Drakeford has said that his government was looking at strengthening regulations on people travelling to second homes and that he would give more details by the end of the week.
Read more from Felicity here.

The UK picture

We're expecting to hear from the UK government in the next 30 minutes or so, but let’s take a look at the latest from the country first:

• A total of 18,100 people hospitalised with coronavirus have now died in the UK, up 759 from yesterday’s total
  
• Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab insisted a target for 100,000 daily tests by the end of this month would be met
  
• New figures suggest coronavirus deaths in care homes in England could have doubled in five days
  
• A delayed delivery of personal protective equipment (PPE) from Turkey has arrived in the UK and is being inspected
  

All German states back face mask use

All 16 German states have announced plans to make face masks compulsory, as the country slowly reduces its lockdown restrictions.
The rules will differ slightly from state to state. Mask use will however be mandatory on public transport throughout the country, and nearly all states will also make people wear face coverings when shopping.
You can read more about the plans here.
Germany's Robert Koch Institute (RKI) has confirmed 145,694 cases and recorded 4,879 deaths in total.

Have we passed the peak?

Robert Cuffe - BBC head of statistics
In the UK there have been 18,100 deaths from coronavirus in hospital, and a daily death toll of 759, according to figures from the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).
The pattern in these data is one of gradual, bumpy decline from a peak of 980 deaths reported in one day, on April 10th.
The peaks and troughs are exacerbated by reporting lags, especially at weekends.
The picture of decline is further supported by NHS England’s analysis of deaths on the day they actually occur – this shows a rise to a peak in the week before Easter and a gradual decline since then. Both the rise and fall are smoother than for the daily DHSC figures.
These figures are mainly for hospitals, and it is possible that the picture in the community or in care homes may follow a slightly different pattern. So we can’t yet say we’ve passed the peak without caveats.
Even when we can, the international pattern has not been one of rapid declines - as you can see in the chart below - but a gradual deceleration.

New York governor responds to protests

There were protesters outside the New York state capitol as Governor Andrew Cuomo gave his daily update. A reporter told Cuomo the demonstrators said they were not receiving unemployment funds and could not feed their families.
Similar anti-lockdown protests have occurred across the US, with demonstrators often quoting President Donald Trump's line that "the cure cannot be worse than the disease".
Cuomo responded: "How can the cure be worse than the illness if the illness is potential death?"
He said emotional stress, economic hardships, even rising domestic violence are all "very bad, but not death".
"You're now responsible for my life," he said, adding: "What if it was your family that might get infected?"
The governor also promised unemployment payments would be coming in "a couple of days".
"You wanna go to work? Go take a job as an essential worker," Cuomo suggested.
Read more on US lockdown protests:

• What's behind the coronavirus lockdown protests?
  
• The moment a man in scrubs confronts protesting drivers
  

Anti-lockdown protests, like this one in Missouri, have been taking place nationwide

US secretary of state criticises China, WHO

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has criticised the Chinese government and the World Health Organization (WHO) over the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"We strongly believe the Chinese Communist Party did not report the outbreak of the new coronavirus in a timely fashion to the World Health Organization," Pompeo told reporters.
Pompeo said there were very clear expectations about nations needing to "disclose data to protect global health".
He said China did not share all the information it had and instead "covered up how dangerous the disease is" and "censored those who tried to warn the world".
"The WHO's regulatory arm clearly failed during this pandemic," he added.
"Transparency and getting it right is critical to saving lives."
The US administration has said it will withdraw funding from the WHO, but officials at Mr Pompeo's briefing said it would not take back money that had already been given to the WHO.
Want to know more? Our Reality Check team fact-checked President Trump's criticisms of the WHO

UK daily briefing - key developments

We've heard from Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab at Wednesday's Downing Street briefing.
He was joined by the government's Chief Medical Adviser Professor Chris Whitty and the Chief of the Defence Staff, General Sir Nick Carter.
Here are some of the key developments:

• The UK should not expect a "sudden" decline in the number of cases, Prof Whitty said
  
• Social-distancing measures could be needed for "quite a long period of time", the chief medical officer added
  
• Mr Raab warned that lifting the measures too soon risked a second wave of cases and more economic pain
  
• The development of a "highly effective" vaccine or drug could be the only solution but Prof Whitty warned one was unlikely to arrive in the next calendar year
  

• He also said he was hopeful an antibody test - or a "have I had the virus already?" test - could be available in the "pretty near future"
  
• Meanwhile, the head of the Army, Gen Sir Nick Carter, said the military, NHS and government were working on a "very sophisticated" system to distribute more tests and PPE to the front line
  
• Gen Sir Nick said these plans involved a move to "upscale" mobile testing units, which he compared to mobile libraries
  
• He said doing so was the "greatest logistical challenge" he had ever faced in his 40-year career
  

What's the latest from Africa?

A lot has been happening in Africa. To catch you up, here are the latest headlines:

• Cyril Ramaphosa, South African president and chairman of the African Union, has called for aid for Africa from the G20 group of nations. He said that the global recession likely to follow the pandemic would hit African countries "particularly hard"
  
• He has also announced that 70,000 extra troops will be deployed to help enforce the country's lockdown
  
• Ramaphosa earlier announced an economic relief package worth $26bn (£21bn) intended to protect companies and three million workers in South Africa. He said the assistance amounted to 10% of the country's entire GDP
  
• Governors of 19 northern Nigerian states have shut down all traditional Koranic schools, sending home an estimated nine million children
  
• South Africa's Communication Minister Stella Ndabeni has been fined 1,000 rand ($53; £42) for breaking the country's lockdown rules. She was previously placed on two months' administrative leave and had issued a public apology
  
• A number of African countries are among those at risk of famine this year as a result of the pandemic, the World Food Programme (WFP) has warned. They include DR Congo, Ethiopia and South Sudan
  

For all the latest headlines from the continent you can follow our Africa live page here.

France deaths pass 21,000

A further 544 people have died with coronavirus in hospital and care homes in France.
The tally - 336 in hospital and 208 in care homes - brought France's total Covid-19 death toll to 21,340.
Wednesday's daily figure of 544 deaths is 13 more than was reported in the previous 24 hours.
On Monday, France became the fourth country after Italy, Spain and the USA to pass the 20,000-fatality mark.
France has been under lockdown for five weeks. Last week French President Emmanuel Macron said this would be extended until 11 May, and that public events could not be held until mid-July at the earliest.

Footballer Bale and wife donate £500,000 to help Covid-19 response

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale is the captain of the Wales national football team

Wales footballer Gareth Bale and his wife Emma have donated £500,000 to the charitable arm of Cardiff and Vale University Health Board (CVUHB).
The money will provide "those extras for staff and patients that normal NHS funding doesn't provide" and the Cardiff & Vale Health Charity said it was the couple's wish that the money was used on "the response to Covid".
Bale, 30, added: "The University Hospital of Wales holds a special place in my heart - it's where I was born and has provided great support to my friends, my family and the wider community so me and my family would like to show our support.
"Keep up the good work; you're doing an amazing job and thank you very much."

UK analysis: No fast exit from pandemic

Jessica Parker - BBC political correspondent
Too slow. That was the accusation levelled at the UK government earlier by the new Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.
He said ministers had been too slow on testing, and too slow on getting personal protective equipment (PPE) to the front line.
The government has pushed back, pointing out, for example, that more than a billion items of PPE have been delivered.
But Downing Street has conceded there are challenges - and a target to hit 100,000 daily tests is just eight days away.
As if to emphasise that, the head of the armed forces earlier described the response to the virus as the “single greatest logistical challenge that I have come across”.
But amid discussion of the immediate tasks, the long-term nature of this battle was again made clear today.
Chief Medical Adviser Chris Whitty said in the end there were only two ways out of this - highly effective vaccines or drug treatments.
And the chances of getting those in the next calendar year? “Incredibly small,” he predicted.
So while there will be a debate about whether the government was too slow to act in recent months, it’s increasingly clear that there is no fast exit out of this epidemic.

US government employees targeted by hackers - Google

Google’s Threat Analysis Group (Tag) said on Wednesday that US government employees had been targeted by hackers during the Covid-19 crisis.
Tag said it had identified "over a dozen government-backed attacker groups using Covid-19 themes as lure for phishing and malware attempts". It did not specify the governments backing such attacks.
One notable campaign targeted personal accounts of US government employees with messages offering free meals, coupons, online ordering and delivery from fast food franchises.
Google said most of these attack messages were filtered into spam folders.
The company said its security systems have found numerous such examples of hackers trying to exploit the pandemic, including emails linking to sites "spoofing the World Health Organization login page".
There are more than 240 million Covid-related spam messages sent daily, according to Google.
"These findings show that health organisations, public health agencies and the individuals who work there are becoming new targets as a result of Covid-19."

Italy deaths top 25,000

The number of people who have died with coronavirus in Italy, one of the countries hardest hit by the pandemic, has passed 25,000.
Italy's civil protection services on Wednesday reported a further 437 fatalities over the past 24 hours, increasing the overall tally to 25,085.
However, the number of people registered as currently carrying the illness fell to 107,699 from 107,709 on Tuesday, a third consecutive daily decline.
There were 2,384 people in intensive care on Wednesday compared with 2,471 on Tuesday.
Italy's death toll is the second highest in the world after the US.
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said Italy will announce a plan to gradually exit its lockdown by the end of this week.

Red Square party to mark 150th anniversary of Lenin's birth

Sarah Rainsford - BBC Moscow Correspondent

Russian Communist party supporters take part in a flower-laying ceremony marking the 150th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Lenin

For everyone else in Moscow, big birthday parties are banned during the coronavirus epidemic. But not for Vladimir Lenin, founder of the Soviet Union.
To mark the 150th anniversary of his birth, several dozen communists processed across Red Square, beneath red banners, to where Lenin’s embalmed body lies in a mausoleum.
The FSO security agency responsible for the area said the group had been allowed to meet providing they observed the social distancing rules. But an initial attempt to stay two metres apart lasted only moments.
And while some of Lenin’s loyal followers wore medical masks, the party leader – who’s in his mid 70s – went barefaced.
The rest of Moscow has been staying at home for several weeks to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus - all mass gatherings are outlawed. So it’s not clear why the Communists were granted such a high-profile exception.
A group in the neighbouring region of Tula weren’t so lucky. Three were detained there when they laid flowers at one of some 6,000 Lenin statues that still stand on squares and streets across Russia.

'Years of underinvestment has hampered UK'

Years of underinvestment in healthcare has hampered the UK's ability to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, the boss of Roche, one of the world's largest pharmaceutical and diagnostic companies, has told the BBC.
"The real issue here is that the UK has probably not invested enough into healthcare," Severin Schwan, Roche chief executive, told the Newsnight programme in an interview to be aired on Wednesday evening.
"It really shows up in such a crisis when the system is more stressed."
Roche is a key partner of the government and Public Health England in ramping up testing for Covid19.
Mr Schwan added: “You can't fix the infrastructure in a couple of weeks. I mean, if there is too little investment over many years into the healthcare system, then it's simply not possible to ramp up as fast as you would wish in such a challenging situation.”

WHO chief defends Covid-19 response

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), has said he believes the group warned the world of Covid-19 early enough.
"Looking back I think we declared the emergency at the right time and when the world had enough time to respond," he said.
He added the WHO issued its warning when there were no deaths and just 82 cases.
"That was enough to cut it from the bud, enough. That was January 30 and this is more than two months and 21 days ago - close to three months now."
Dr Tedros has faced some calls to resign over handling of the Covid-19 crisis, particularly from a number of US lawmakers. But many governments have praised the organisation, saying its work at this time is vital.
When asked about calls for his resignation, Dr Tedros said he would keep working "day and night" to save lives.

Vaccine could be available this year, says UK scientist

Two scientists who are leading the charge for a vaccine in the UK have been speaking to the BBC about their projects.
Professor Sarah Gilbert is head of a team at the University of Oxford. Trials, which have had 5,000 volunteers, are set to begin on Thursday.
"We just start with two people on the first day, to make sure that everything is well with them, and also that all the procedures are working for the trial and that we are ready to move on to larger numbers."
Professor Robin Shattock, who leads Imperial College London's effort, said if either project provides the "right signal in terms of safety and efficacy", a vaccine could be available for the UK's front-line workers and the most vulnerable before the end of the year.
But he said it would be next year before it could be rolled out around the world.
So, when will we have a vaccine? Read more about the search here

Ukrainian town sealed off after monastery outbreak

Pochayiv in Ukraine has been closed off after a coronavirus outbreak at the Pochayiv Lavra, one of the largest Orthodox monasteries in Eastern Europe.
Dozens of people have contracted the virus in the western Ukrainian town, including some priests at the 500-year-old monastery. The population of Pochayiv is about 8,000.
Hundreds of people defied a police ban on visiting the monastery for Orthodox Easter, the BBC's Vitalii Chervonenko reports.
Officials had already sealed off the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in the Ukrainian capital, one of the world's most well-known Orthodox shrines.
You can read more about the outbreak here

'We have a long way to go,' warns WHO head

We reported earlier that Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), had warned that the virus would "be with us for a long time".
During the media briefing earlier today, he explained that much of the world was still seeing worrying upward trends.
"Most countries are still in the early stages of their epidemics," he added. "And some that were affected early in the pandemic are now starting to see a resurgence in cases."
The number of people to have contracted coronavirus is continuing to climb globally. There have now been more than 2.6 million cases worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University.

WHO issues guidelines on Ramadan

The World Health Organization (WHO) has reissued its guidance on observing Ramadan - a month-long Islamic fast that begins tomorrow - during the pandemic.
The guidance says that while it's fine for healthy people to fast as usual, Covid-19 patients should "consider religious licences regarding breaking the fast in consultation with their doctors, as they would do with any other disease".
"Despite the different execution in practices this year, it is important to reassure the faithful that they can still reflect, improve, pray, share, and care – all from a healthy distance," it adds.
So although Ramadan may be different this year, it's still possible to observe it faithfully. Earlier this month, BBC religion journalist Sophia Smith-Galer looked at different ways of celebrating religious festivals while staying at home.
You can also read the WHO's guidance in full here

Harvard now says it won't accept relief funds

Harvard University has reversed its decision to accept coronavirus economic relief funds from the US government.
The university, which is the wealthiest in the world, had previously said it would keep the funding after President Donald Trump demanded Harvard pay back nearly $9m (£7.3m) in coronavirus stimulus money.
In a statement on Wednesday, Harvard said that though it would see serious financial challenges from the pandemic, it did not want the "intense focus" on Harvard to "undermine participation" in a relief bill meant to help "students and institutions whose financial challenges in the coming months may be most severe".
“As a result of this, and the evolving guidance being issued around use of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund, Harvard has decided not to seek or accept the funds allocated to it by statute."
The university said it had received funding based on its total number of students as well as the number of lower-income students enrolled.
Other elite universities, including Princeton and Yale, have also received this money.

What's happening with the UK's tracking app?

One test version of the app told users deemed to be at risk to go home by the most direct route

You might have heard about a new contract-tracing app being tested for use in the UK.
It's one way the government, like many others around the world, hopes to be able to begin lifting some social-distancing measures in the future.
If you haven't been following this story closely, you may have a few questions: What exactly is it? When is it available? And will it work?
In a nutshell, the app alerts smartphone users if they have recently been near someone who was later found to be infected - allowing them to enter self-isolation and help prevent the spread of the virus.
This nifty illustration shows how it works.

It is expected the app will use Bluetooth signals to log when smartphone owners are close to each other



It's being developed by NHSX - the UK health service's digital innovation unit. So far it's been tested by some families and by engineers at a Royal Air Force base. No release date has been announced.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said the UK is working with experts in digital and tech ethics to ensure they get the app right. But that hasn't stopped some experts raising concerns.
Mr Hancock also warned that - once available - it will only be effective if lots of people download it. Will they? Frankly, we don't know.

Face masks in Germany - and other news from Europe

Face masks are to be compulsory throughout Germany as Spain seeks to extend its lockdown. Here’s the latest from Europe:

• Italy’s death toll climbed to 25,085 on Wednesday, rising by 437 compared with 534 the day before. The number of people currently confirmed ill with the virus fell for the third consecutive day, and the number of people in intensive care also continued to decline
  
• In France a further 544 people have died with coronavirus. The tally - 336 in hospital and 208 in care homes - brought France's total Covid-19 death toll to 21,340
  
• All 16 states in Germany have now announced plans to make face masks compulsory. While some states will not make them mandatory for people while shopping, everyone throughout the country will have to wear face coverings on public transport
  
• Spain is seeking to extend its state of emergency for a further two weeks, until 9 May. Speaking in parliament today Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the country could start to loosen restrictions in the second half of May, provided authorities managed to stay “on top of the virus”
  
• And the charity Human Rights Watch has criticised Greece for not doing enough to "avert a public health crisis” in overcrowded camps for asylum seekers and migrants
  

What's the latest from the US and Canada?

As we wait for the delayed White House briefing, here's the latest from North America:

• There are now over 842,000 confirmed Covid-19 cases in the US, and more than 40,000 in Canada
  
• The US has had more than 46,000 deaths, while Canada has seen more than 2,000 deaths
  
• Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a C$9bn ($6.4bnb; £5bn) fund to support post-secondary students and recent graduates; eligible students will receive between C$1,250 and C$1,750 per month, from May to August
  

• New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said the city's fireworks show on the July 4 independence holiday would still go on, despite Covid-19 restrictions: “No matter what the coronavirus throws at us, we’re going to find a way to honour America on that beautiful day"
  
• An Ohio prison has had 78% of its inmates test positive for Covid-19; the state's correctional agency says it "has taken an aggressive and unique approach" by mass testing inmates and staff and that many of the cases are asymptomatic; prisoners now account for 27% of all Ohio virus cases
  
• During a briefing earlier today, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused China of destroying existing samples of Covid-19 and not sharing samples from inside the country, "making it impossible to track [the virus'] evolution"
  
• New post-mortem examinations in California have changed the timeline of Covid-19 in the US, revealing that the first deaths from the virus came weeks earlier than previously believed.
  

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The president is joined by Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control, Surgeon General Jerome Adams, and Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

US disease director clarifies 'second wave' comment

Trump says recent comments from Centers of Disease Control (CDC) Director Dr Robert Redfield that a second Covid-19 wave could be even worse were "inaccurate".
"He was totally misquoted," Mr Trump says. "His whole purpose in making the statement was to get a flu shot."
Redfield joins Mr Trump to clarify.
He says he noted that next autumn "could be more difficult, more complicated" if influenza and Covid-19 were circulating at the same time.
"I think it's really important to emphasise what I didn't say," Dr Redfield says.
"I didn't say this was going to be worse, I said it was going to be more difficult and potentially complicated.
"The issue that I was talking about being more difficult is we're going to have two viruses circulating at the same time."
Redfield says he was accurately quoted in the Washington Post, but takes issue with the headline, “CDC director warns second wave of coronavirus is likely to be even more devastating”.
Here's what Redfield is quoted as saying by the Post: “There’s a possibility that the assault of the virus on our nation next winter will actually be even more difficult than the one we just went through.
"We’re going to have the flu epidemic and the coronavirus epidemic at the same time.”
Trump tweeted about this earlier:
View more on twitter

Trump says virus 'might not come back at all'

Trump asks Dr Deborah Birx, one of the taskforce experts, if there is a good chance that Covid-19 won't come back at all.
Birx instead says it'll be easier to find it if it does.
"I think we are assured that the CDC is putting in place today what we are going to need in the fall so that we can stay in containment if, potentially, the virus comes back," she says.
"We're hoping that the flu infections also go down because people are much more aware of respiratory illnesses and how to protect themselves."
Trump says: "And if it comes back, though, it won't be coming back in the form that it was. It will be coming back in smaller doses that we can contain.
He says "you could have some embers of corona", but adds: "We will not go through what we've been going through for the last two months."
"It might not come back at all," he adds

Trump reminds Americans to follow guidelines

"It's been encouraging to watch states begin to open up, it's a beautiful thing to see," Trump says.
"I want to remind all Americans to adhere to our guidelines, very important," Trump adds.
He goes on to say he wants the state governors "to do what they think is best, but ideally they'll adhere" to the administration's guidance.
He reminds Americans to wash their hands, avoid close contact and wear a face covering in cases where social distancing is impractical.
"We don't want a rebound," Trump says.
The president's reminder comes after weeks of anti-lockdown protests across the country.
Protesters say the restrictions in states are an overreaction and have demanded governors reopen their economies.
Democratic governors had requested the Trump administration remind Americans of the guidelines due to these demonstrations.

• The moment a man in scrubs confronts drivers
  
• What's behind the anti-lockdown protests?
  

Trump disagrees 'strongly' with Georgia reopening

The president also noted he disagreed "strongly" with Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, a fellow Republican, who has decided to reopen some non-essential businesses.
"I told the governor very simply I disagree," Trump says, noting "safety has to predominate" in reopening the states.
"I think spas and beauty salons and tattoo parlours and barber shops - in phase one [of reopening] is just too soon."
The president added: "But at the same time I want him to do what he thinks is right.”
Kemp, a Trump ally, on Monday announced Georgia would allow gyms, bowling alleys, nail salons and massage therapists to open on Friday. In-person church services can resume.
Restaurants and cinemas can also open. His order also prohibited cities from imposing their own restrictions on businesses.

Trump signs immigration order

President Trump tells reporters he's just signed an executive order that he said yesterday would temporarily suspend green cards.
“I’ve just signed it before coming into the room,” he says.
"This will ensure unemployed Americans of all backgrounds will be first in line for jobs as our economy reopens," Trump adds.
"As for amending it, extending it, that we can do at the appropriate time."
Here's our story.

More on that immigration order...

So what does President Trump's immigration order do?
For the next 60 days, it will bar anyone who is currently outside the United States and does not have a valid immigrant visa or travel document.
It does not affect:

• Anyone seeking to enter the US as a healthcare professional
  
• Those coming under the Immigrant Investors visa
  
• US Service Members
  
• Special Immigrant Visa holders
  
• Anyone whose entry is in the "national interest"
  
• The spouses and children under-21 of these groups
  

Trump thanks Harvard for not accepting virus aid

Trump thanks Harvard University after it decided not to accept nearly $9m (£7.3m) in coronavirus relief aid.
The president said on Tuesday he was unhappy that the prestigious US university had received stimulus money.
"I'm pleased to announce that Harvard has announced today that they will not accept the funds, nor will Stanford University or many of the others that were involved," he said.
"They're not accepting the money and that's great, so I want to thank Harvard, I want to thank Stanford and I want to thank the other companies," he added.

US infectious disease chief: 'We will have virus in fall'

Infectious diseases chief Dr Anthony Fauci says he is "convinced" the US "will have coronavirus in the fall" because of how transmissible the disease is.
But he says the nation will be "much, much better prepared" in the autumn "compared to what happened to us this winter".
Fauci notes that the programme to deal with Covid-19 "is not one that is going to be, ‘turn the lights on in America, we’re finished'."
"We have to proceed in a very careful and measured way," he says, adding that the guidelines by the administration are just that.
Fauci also says that if the US does not adopt such an approach, "there’s a likelihood that it will rebound and the one way not to reopen the economy is to have a rebound that we can’t take care of".
"If you leave the virus to its own devices it will take off," Fauci adds.

Las Vegas mayor offers city as 'control group'

Carolyn Goodman, the independent mayor of Las Vegas, has said she proposed offering the city as a "control group" to test out dropping social distancing measures.
“Well, how do you know unless you have a control group?” she said on CNN, adding that she had offered to let Las Vegas be a control group but was turned down by statisticians.
Ms Goodman wants to see the city's casinos, hotels and businesses reopened.
"We have to open up," she said.

Trump says he has never heard of 'whistleblower'

Trump was asked about a senior government vaccine expert, Dr Rick Bright, who says he has been sidelined for refusing to toe the political line.
The president says: "I've never heard of him."
On the claim he was driven out, Trump adds: "Maybe he was, maybe he wasn't."
Dr Bright told the New York Times he was removed after conflicting with the Trump administration over unproven coronavirus treatments.
The president has often touted chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine as possible treatments against Covid-19.

'Certainly, pets can get infected'

Infectious disease chief Dr Fauci is asked about the recent news of two pet cats catching Covid-19.
"Certainly animals, pets can get infected," he says, noting big cats in zoos have become infected with the coronavirus.
But he says there is no proof the virus can be transmitted from pets to humans.
"Biologically, anything is possible," Fauci says. "But there's no evidence whatsoever that we have seen from an epidemiological standpoint that pets can be transmitters within a household."
Fauci also points out that finding an animal has the virus does not necessarily mean the animal is transmitting it. He says zoo animals that have caught Covid-19 likely contracted it from an asymptomatic keeper who was caring for them.

Trumps disavows knowledge of 'dog-breeder'

US Health Secretary Alex Azar reportedly appointed a trusted aide who previously ran a dog-breeding business in Texas to lead the Department of Health and Human Services’ day-to-day response to coronavirus.
The aide, Brian Harrison, 37, had no experience in public health or medicine, reports Reuters.
Asked about this, Trump says: "I don't know about that."
Before joining the Trump administration Harrison ran a company called Dallas Labradoodles for six years, according to financial disclosures unearthed by Reuters news agency.
Five sources told Reuters that some officials in the White House derisively called him “the dog breeder".
“Everyone had to report up through him,” said one official.

Chloroquine: Is there evidence it works?

Fauci says he has no concerns that public health officials are being muzzled by the Trump administration, noting that he is still on the podium even after expressing dissenting views. He was responding to a question about hydroxychloroquine, a drug touted by the president as a possible coronavirus treatment.
There has been a global surge in demand for drugs normally used against malaria to tackle the coronavirus, as governments urgently seek out treatments for the new disease.
Chloroquine, and a related derivative, hydroxychloroquine, have gained attention - despite the World Health Organization (WHO) saying there is no definitive evidence they work.
According to a study released on Tuesday, coronavirus patients taking hydroxychloroquine had higher deaths rates compared with those who did not take the drug.
The research focused on 368 patients at US Veterans Health Administration medical centres. It found 97 patients who took hydroxychloroquine had a 27.8% mortality rate. The 158 patients who did not take the drug had an 11.4% death rate.
The research, which was not peer reviewed or published in a medical journal, was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the University of Virginia.
So what exactly is the evidence of the effectiveness of malaria drugs as a treatment for the coronavirus, and who is using them?
Read the full story from our Reality Check team here.

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Minority doctors 'need to be urgently risk-assessed'

A body representing Indian-origin doctors in the UK has written to the NHS calling for all staff to urgently be risk-assessed for age, sex, ethnicity and health conditions.
Ethnic minorities in the UK are disproportionately more likely to become critically ill with the coronavirus - 34% of ICU patients are Bame (Black, Asian and minority ethnic), despite making up only about 13% of the general population. A disproportionate number of NHS staff who've died of the virus have also been Bame.
A government review is looking into the issue.
"There is palpable worry, upset and at times anger amongst them that the matter [of Bame mortality rates] is not being addressed with sufficient urgency," the British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (Bapio) said. the letter adds that many of the health conditions likely to make people more susceptible to Covid-19 - including hypertension, diabetes and vitamin D deficiency - are more common in Bame people in the UK than the rest of the population.
It says if staff are deemed to be at significant risk they should be deployed in non-Covid working environments or asked to work remotely.
It also asks that Bame staff be tested for vitamin D deficiency.
Read more about how the coronavirus is affecting Bame communities in the UK.

'I've been given a second chance'

  :Left Quotes:  I touched death and I'm very lucky to be alive. What I'm now looking forward to is appreciating nature. You realise material things don't matter. When I get outside I want to breathe the air, look at birds and enjoy the natural beauty of the world. I've been given a second chance."

Elizabeth knows she is lucky to be alive.
After falling seriously ill with coronavirus, she was admitted to hospital earlier this month.
Read her story of life - and near-death - on a high-risk Covid-19 ward.

We're pausing the live page

Thanks for joining our live page today. We're pausing our coverage until tomorrow - but before we go, here's a recap of some of the day's top stories.

• There are now more than 2.6 million confirmed cases of coronavirus globally, and more than 180,000 people have died, according to tracking by Johns Hopkins University
  
• The head of the WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, warned that the virus will be "with us for a long time", and that there are "worrying upward trends" in parts of Africa, Central and South America and Eastern Europe
  

• England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty says the UK is not seeing a steep descent in new infections, and that the chance of an effective vaccine or drug being developed in the next calendar year is "incredibly small"
  
• Still in the UK, the head of Roche - one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies - told the BBC that the country's ability to respond to the pandemic has been hampered by years of underinvestment in healthcare
  
• A postmortem in California has revealed that the first death of the virus in the US was actually weeks earlier than previously thought
  
• In New York state, two cats have been diagnosed with coronavirus. They are the first domestic pets to test positive for the virus in the US
  
• Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa and chairman of the African Union, called for aid for Africa from the G20 group of nations - saying that the global recession likely to follow the pandemic would hit African countries "particularly hard"
  
• Germany is making face masks mandatory on public transport from next week